Opening of Paktia maternity centre urged

GARDEZ (PAN): Residents on Thursday urged the government to make functional a newly-constructed maternity centre in southeastern Paktia province by appointing staff to the 20-bed health facility.

Though the centre was provided with modern equipment a year ago by the Bayat Foundation, yet it could not start functioning to due to what officials call a lack of resources to appoint professional doctors.

Residents hope the hospital would help reduce women's problems. Taxi driver Sardar said the maternity ward at the Gardez Civil Hospital lacked equipment and proper services for pregnant women.

However, public health officials rejected the claim that the maternity ward faced a shortage of facilities. But a midwife at the hospital, speaking on condition of anonymity, said they had no proper services for pregnant women.

Public Health Director Agha Khan Miakhel said a Ministry of Public Health delegation would visit the province soon to open the maternity centre. He added the centre would have an ambulance facility and professional doctors.

The director said the centre could not be inaugurated due to lack of resources and their department was unable to provide facilities to every newly-built health centre.

A Bayat Foundation official said their job was to construct health centres and provide them with equipment. He added it was the responsibility of the ministry to keep the centres functional.

The governor's spokesman, Roohullah Samoon, said they had repeatedly requested the public health department to open the new health centre.